Study: Michigan's wage gap between men and women is one of the largest in the country

Women in Michigan are getting paid considerably less than men, a 2013 national study says.MLive file photo

GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- Pay discrimination for Michigan women is one of the highest in the country, according to a recent study by the National Women's Law Center.

Michigan was ranked 44th of the 50 states in the wage gap between men and women, the study found.

On average, a woman in Michigan who works a full-time, year-round job is paid 74 cents for every dollar paid to a man. The national average wage gap is 77 cents.

The wage gap is even wider for African-American and Hispanic women in Michigan, who earn 68 cents and 55 cents, respectively, to every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men.

“It shows that there is still gender discrimination – it’s very subtle – but it’s obvious from the studies and research results,” said Sharon Caldwell-Newton, executive director of the Women’s Resource Center in Grand Rapids.

The study reported Wyoming has the worst wage gap in the country where women earn 67 cents to a man's dollar. That is followed by Louisiana and Utah with 69 cents, West Virginia with 71 cents, North Dakota with 73 cents and Mississippi with 74 cents.
The country’s Capitol, Washington, D.C., has the smallest gap with only a 10-cent pay difference between a men and women. Other states to top the list, include Vermont with 87 cents, Maryland with 86 cents, and California and Nevada with 85 cents.

Caldwell-Newton said a wage gap exists in 41 percent of cases where men and women hold the same job professions and have the same experience.

“Unfortunately, for African American women in Michigan, it’s a double whammy,” she said. “Not only is there the wage gap, but the racial component is really compelling.”

For African-American women, Michigan had the 13th smallest gap in the country, despite the 32-cent gap. It's smaller than the national average of a 36-cent gap, or 64 cents to a man's dollar.

For Hispanic women, Michigan came in with the 17th smallest gap in the country with a 45-cent gap.

“Discrimination in gender and race is still out there – there’s no doubt about that,” Caldwell-Newton said.

Women represent nearly two-thirds of minimum wage workers, according to the report. Full-time, year-round work at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour leaves a woman with two children thousands of dollars below the poverty line.

Several factors causing Michigan’s wage gap to widen include significant loss in the manufacturing industry, women working in more service-industry professions, such as childcare providers, where wages are among the lowest, as well as taking more time off from a career to raise a family.

“As we’ve seen manufacturing-based jobs decline, more and more of the lower wage service jobs are being held by women. So we’re seeing that gap get worse and it has stayed at that level for the last few years,” Caldwell-Newton said. “Despite women’s advances in the workforce over the past 40 years, the gender wage gap still exists. This gap translates into hundreds of thousands of dollars that a woman will lose over her career life -- income that could have made a critical difference to the economic security of their families.”

The Women’s Resource Center, which provides women with career-building skills to break or prevent the cycle of poverty through employment, continues to raise awareness that the wage cap still exists.

“For people to think that it’s not an issue, studies and research show that it’s there,” Caldwell-Newton said.

Caldwell-Newton explained that employers should review their hiring and pay structure and base it by qualifications. Also, women employees should research the pay scale for the particular job their looking at going after and negotiate during the hiring process to land them that competitive pay.